Camden STEAM

STEAM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics. The A stands for Creativity. It captures the belief that addressing STEM and Creativity together delivers greater value to individuals, employers, the local community and economy.

In March 2026, we launched the refresh of the Camden STEAM Strategy, outlining our priorities and plans to grow and strengthen STEAM opportunities for young people in Camden.
The refresh builds on our existing work and sets a clear direction for the next phase of delivery.

Camden STEAM Strategy 2022 to 2025

Watch: Camden STEAM strategy launch at Google, King's Cross - short film (4 mins, 14 secs)

Camden STEAM Vision

We will work together building a future where Camden is a beacon of inclusive opportunity and innovation. Young people, regardless of background, will be inspired by STEAM opportunities and they will be ready for the world of work in Camden’s STEAM industries. STEAM employers will have access to a local diverse talent pipeline to meet their recruitment needs and help them to innovate and flourish. 

We equip Camden’s young people with the skills and opportunities to embark on a STEAM career by bringing together employers, educators and young people.   

Camden STEAM brings opportunities in the digital, scientific and creative industries to life for Camden’s young people. Camden is home to innovative businesses and institutions from Google, Lendlease and the Francis Crick Institute, to world-leading universities such as UCL and Central Saint Martins, and a huge range of thriving small and medium businesses and start-ups. Our job is to help young people see there could be a career for them just around the corner. 

We connect employers with schools so young people have a sense of the job opportunities that exist on their doorstep, as well as working together to create new opportunities.  

There are now 78 STEAM Pledge employers working with us and over 500 STEAM Ambassadors (employee volunteers) supporting Camden’s students. We work together to achieve our strategic objectives: 

1. Build young people’s awareness of STEAM industries, and support them to develop the skills, knowledge and attributes STEAM employers need 
2. Provide pathways and opportunities for young people to enter and succeed in STEAM careers  
3.  Engage young people from underrepresented backgrounds in STEAM and support a diverse talent pipeline 
4. Create an innovative and inclusive STEAM community for Camden that influences policy and supports growth  

Check out the School and Employer pages to get involved. 

Join our growing network by signing the Camden STEAM Pledge and supporting young people into STEAM careers.

London AI Campus

The London AI Campus is a partnership between Google, Camden Learning and Camden Council, enabled by Camden’s pioneering STEAM programme. Camden STEAM develops strong partnerships between employers and schools in Camden to create career opportunities for young people and has been greatly enhanced by Google’s support on multiple impactful opportunities, including STEAM’s flagship work experience programme and workplace visits, with the London AI Campus marking an exciting phase in the partnership. 

The London AI Campus aims to inspire, inform and educate students and teachers in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital skills.  

The AI campus provides an exceptional learning experience for Camden students who are interested in pursuing a career or degree in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and related fields.  A range of innovative and engaging enrichment-focused activities will maximise the expertise of specialist teacher, tech employees, sector leaders and academic organisations drawn from across Camden and the UK.  

“Congratulations to the first cohort of AI Connect students on their graduation from this groundbreaking programme. Their achievement reflects not only their hard work and ambition, but also the huge potential of Camden's young people when they are given access to opportunities, expertise and support.

At a time when too many young people face barriers to employment, Camden STEAM is working to help build the confidence, skills and networks needed for future careers. Whether that is through hands-on experience with leading companies, providing a rewarding learning experience with the AI Campus, or showcasing artwork in major public exhibitions.

By strengthening links between our family of schools, colleges and businesses, we're not only creating opportunities that benefit our borough’s young people, but also the local economy.”

Councillor Marcus Boyland, Cabinet Member for Best Start for Children and Families

We are keen to hear from partners interested in getting involved with Camden’s STEAM programme or the AI Campus. Please contact [email protected] or [email protected] to find out more.

We launched our AI Campus Insights Report 2025 to celebrate the impact, achievements and learning from the first year of the London AI Campus.

We aim to reach every young person in a Camden state school, from Early Years to Year 13, every year with an impactful STEAM opportunity. We are here to support Camden schools by: 

• Brokering STEAM Ambassador activities (employee volunteers) 
• Managing and co-ordinating the annual Camden STEAM Work Experience Programme each July for Year 12 students  
• Managing and co-ordinating T-Level placements
• Creating STEAM apprenticeship opportunities 
• Sharing impactful opportunities from our Camden STEAM Pledge partners – recent examples include a a GSK Hackathon, Central Saint Martins Art Biennale, Google and The Orangery workplace visits and Primary Careers Day

STEAM Ambassadors 

We have a network of over 500 STEAM Ambassadors drawn from over 78 Camden employers including Google, Mace, Arup, the Francis Crick Institute, The Roundhouse, Bennetts Associates (architects), Phoenix Court, GSK, Moonbug Entertainment, AstraZeneca and many others.  Ambassadors have a wide range of experience between them and are keen to support Camden schools and young people, from giving a careers talk to working with you to design a lesson using their industry expertise. 

• Could you invite a STEAM Ambassador to share their industry expertise and career insights in a lesson?  
• Would you like to work alongside a STEAM Ambassador to co-design an activity, lesson or sequence of lessons for young people that enables them to learn about a particular industry and to practice skills relevant to that job?   

View a step-by-step guide for teachers setting up an employer partnership.

“A young person who has four or more meaningful encounters with an employer is 86% less likely to be unemployed or not in education or training, and can earn up to 22% more during their career.” Education and Employers Taskforce research 

How do I book a STEAM Ambassador?  

Complete this online form to request a partnership with a Camden STEAM Ambassador.

Feedback from schools and STEAM Ambassadors

Camden STEAM Ambassadors inspiring the next generation by bringing real-world careers into the classroom:

“Our Year 1 classes held their STEAM exhibition last week for the Eco Cities they created in their project last half term. They were absolutely wonderful and the children really loved the project” – Teacher, Primrose Hill Primary School  

‘It’s opening their minds as to how the world of work works and how the subjects that they study in school are going to be applied… being creative, being visually literate is really crucial.” - Teacher, La Sainte Union Secondary School  

“The access to work experience, the access to employers and people in all sorts of different sectors has been really, really amazing. And it's just hugely supported our careers programme because it's enabled us to kind of stop being teachers talking about these careers and actually invite people in from industry. And I think that's had a huge impact on our students” – Careers Lead and Assistant Head, Hampstead School

“I would love for young people to learn that there are aspects of STEAM intertwined in everything we do as engineers in industry” – STEAM Ambassador, structural engineer

Primary Careers Day 

Each year, we deliver Primary Careers Day, giving over 400 year 4 primary pupils from across Camden an inspiring first introduction to the world of work with over 20 employers. Pupils take part in hands-on workshops led by STEAM Ambassadors from leading Camden employers. These help them discover the wide range of careers on their doorstep and see how what they learn in the classroom connects to real jobs. 

“I didn’t know there was a job called neuroscientist. They get to deal with brains and what’s inside your brain, like how you speak and how you hear.” – Student attending Primary Careers Day  

“If we can inspire young people at an early age to explore lots of ideas then later in life, they will be more informed and have an arrange of things that can help them. It’s lovely at this age that students can get a light touch that becomes more serious later” - Mace attending Primary Careers Day 

"It's amazing to have so many different stands and the chance for children to use the resources – the practical element really hooks them in!" - Teacher attending Primary Careers Day 

Work experience

Each July, we deliver a week of high-quality STEAM work experience placements, providing more than 400 students with meaningful workplace insights and opportunities. Our ambition is to ensure that every Year 12 student in the borough can access this experience.

Camden STEAM teams up with world-leading companies and institutions to deliver work experience placements. The following companies have worked for or work with us to deliver work experience across the borough:

• Arup
• AstraZeneca
• AutogenAI
• Bennetts Associates
• British Land
• British Library
• Camden Council Digital and Data Services
• Camden Council Inclusive Economy Service
• Camden Spark (Universal Music, Phoenix Theatre, Roundhouse, October Gallery, Celebro Media, London Film School)
• Digital Catapult
• Francis Crick Institute
• Google
• Hoare Lea
• LabTech
• Models 1
• Moonbug Entertainment
• Phoenix Court
• Piercy & Company
• PineBridge
• SCS Railways
• St George PLC
• UCL Biosciences
• UCL Special Collections
• Zappi
• ZSL

Impact:

• Inclusive experience: 96% of students felt welcome at their placements.
• Skills development: 99% of students felt they had developed team working skills; 95% felt they had developed listening and staying positive skills
• Sector knowledge: 91% said they now had a good or excellent knowledge of different departments and sectors. 87% said they were interested in a job within the organisation or sector
• Met Expectations: 93% of participants said the experience met expectations. 
• Confidence in career ambitions: 87% of young people felt confident that they could achieve their future career ambitions as a result of taking part

Article: Celebrating Camden STEAM’s Summer of STEAM

Video: STEAM Work Experience

Student feedback

STEAM Work Experience is designed to help young people understand the working world, explore STEAM careers, and develop essential skills, especially those with the least access to these opportunities. 

“Honestly, I didn't think I belonged in a place like this, and then you meet so many people who are just so different and they just work so well together." Year 12 student on the Google STEAM placement.

Work experience placements build young people’s awareness of STEAM industries and the skills, knowledge and attributes employers are looking for and the different entry pathways.  

"I really liked the Discovery Centre and soft skills workshop as it made me aware of different pathways in the pharmaceutical industry that are available such as apprenticeships that AstraZeneca offer and placements for university students. I enjoyed working on the business challenge about how to market a diabetes drug to healthcare professionals, including thinking about the language to use" Year 12 student on the AstraZeneca placement.

“I gained a much better understanding of work in the future, like what I would put on a personal statement and how to manage in an interview as well as working in groups to complete a project.” Year 12 student on the Camden Council Inclusive Economies placement.

T Levels

T Levels are a vocational qualification for 16 to 19-year-olds that combine classroom learning with real-world industry experience. Developed in collaboration with employers, these two-year courses offer students a unique pathway to kickstart their careers while achieving academic excellence. The Industry Placement is a crucial part of the qualification and one that T Level students are the most excited about when completing the course. 

Six T Level qualifications are now being delivered across five Camden secondary schools, representing significant growth up from three qualifications delivered in three schools. We are collaborating closely with schools and employers to ensure that every student has access to a meaningful industry placement with one of Camden’s diverse and dynamic businesses.

We offer support to schools through brokering relationships from across our network of employers and setting up a partnership with schools, ensuring that both school and employer feel supported and well set up to deliver an excellent T Level offer for students. 

We coordinate and facilitate the Camden School T Level Network, bringing together schools from across the borough to collaborate on T Level delivery. The network provides a space for sharing best practice, addressing common challenges and supporting continuous improvement, ensuring that all Camden schools can deliver high-quality T Level programmes and industry placements.

If you are a school in Camden and would like to find out more about T Levels, the offer in Camden or how we can support you with your T Level planning, please contact [email protected]. 

Or read this T Level employer flyer

Join the Camden STEAM movement

Sign the Camden STEAM Pledge and work with us to support all young people in Camden schools with inspiring career insights and opportunities  

“The benefits of this STEAM partnership have been felt by our team at Google: not just in the feedback from our mentors, but in the tangible ways that these young people have helped shape our plans for the local area” – Zoe Stern, Head of Community Affairs Europe, Google 

Camden STEAM Partners drive forward these principles in your work so together we achieve our Camden STEAM vision:  

•  Build young people’s awareness of STEAM industries, and support them to develop the skills, knowledge and attributes STEAM employers need 

•  Provide pathways and opportunities for young people to enter and succeed in STEAM careers  

•  Engage young people from underrepresented backgrounds in STEAM and support a diverse talent pipeline 

•  Create an innovative and inclusive STEAM community for Camden that influences policy and supports growth  
 

Camden STEAM Pledge

View the Camden STEAM Pledge and get in touch at [email protected]

We ask every STEAM Pledge Employer to commit to the STEAM Ambassadors, Work Experience programmes and T Level placements.

STEAM Ambassadors

Deliver career activities in schools to help us reach every young person, every year. STEAM Ambassadors are at the heart of the STEAM Pledge. STEAM Ambassadors are our network of employee volunteers in Camden primary, secondary and specialist schools. Camden STEAM trains and supports STEAM Ambassadors, and brokers activities that have a real impact for young people.

Work Experience

Welcome young people on work experience to enable every 16-18-year-old young person in Camden to access a placement, which has a significant impact for them. Host a group of young people during Camden’s STEAM Work Experience week each July, or commit a places on your existing programme to Camden state school students. Camden STEAM will guide you through the process of planning a high-quality placement and support you to recruit students from local schools. 

Placements are prioritised for students who are underrepresented in STEAM, including girls, students from Black, Asian and other ethnic backgrounds, those with additional support needs, and care-experienced young people. We also prioritise students who have not previously had access to work experience opportunities. The benefits of the Work Experience Programme to Google your company are immense. Companies continuously feedback about the successful experience they have with students on placements and recognise that they are helping to shaped their plans in the local area of Camden. 

Find out more about how your organisation can get involved in Camden STEAM Work Experience Week.

If you are an employer in Camden or the surrounding boroughs and would like to get involved with Camden STEAM Work Experience, contact [email protected].

T Levels 

T Levels are a vocational qualification for 16–19-year-olds, designed in collaboration with employers to meet the needs of the modern workforce. They sit alongside A Levels and apprenticeships, offering a high-quality post-16 pathway that combines classroom learning with a 45-day (315-hour) industry placement.

T Levels launched in Camden schools in September 2024 and has grown substantially within the last two years, having more subject areas and reaching more Camden Secondary Schools. This is an ideal time for employers to get involved—supporting young people to develop the skills needed for your sector, while identifying and nurturing future talent for your organisation.

T Levels being delivered in Camden

• Media, Broadcast and Production (Content Creation) 
• Management and Administration 
• Marketing
• Digital Software Development 
• Laboratory Sciences
• Health 

Industry Placements give employers the opportunity to shape the next generation of talent, while benefiting from fresh ideas, extra project support, and the chance to develop staff through mentoring. They also provide a way to identify and recruit local young talent early, contribute to workforce diversity and social mobility, and strengthen your organisation’s connection to the Camden community.

There are additional ways to get involved, such as hosting a masterclass, judging a competition, or setting an industry-standard brief or project.

If you are an employer in Camden or the surrounding boroughs and would like to get involved with Camden T Levels, contact [email protected].

There are now over 78 STEAM employers working with us and over 500 STEAM Ambassadors (employee volunteers) supporting Camden’s students. Below are those employers who have pledged support to Camden STEAM. 
 

STEAM Pledge Employers

• Archio
• Arup
• AstraZeneca
• AutogenAI
• Ballymore
• BAM Nuttall
• BBUK Studios
• Bennetts Associates
• British Library
• British Land
• Cadent
• Camden Town Unlimited
• Children’s Radio/Fun Kids Live
• Cockpit Arts
• Conran Design Group
• Central Saint Martins
• Digital Catapult
• Donmar Warehouse
• Eden Smith
• Eurostar International
• Exterion Media
• Farrans
• Film Fixer
• FM Conway
• Forever Audio
• Francis Crick Institute
• Gerald Eve
• Glenman Corporation
• Google
• GSK
• Hatton Garden BID
• High Speed 1
• High Speed 2
• Hoare Lea
• Institute of Practitioners in Advertising
• Jas Bhalla Works
• KX Recruit
• Labtech
• Lambert Smith Hampton
• Lendlease
• LifeFabs
• LocalGlobe/Phoenix Court
• London Film School
• London School of Economics - Entrepreneurship
• Mace Dragados JV
• Matrix SCM
• Meta
• McAleer & Rushe
• McClaren Group
• Models 1
• Momentum Transport
• Moonbug Entertainment
• Morgan Sindall
• Mullaley
• Piercy & Company
• Pilon
• PineBridge Investments
• Related Argent
• The Roundhouse
• RS Components
• SCS Railways
• Softwire
• Stantec
• Skanska
• Springer Nature
• St George PLC
• The Place
• Troup, Bywaters & Anders
• UCLH
• UCL
• UCL Cancer Institute
• UPP
• Veolia
• Wates
• Wayve
• Wellcome Trust
• Zappi
• ZSL